With the help of signboards, Song Yan arrived at the assembly hall and was met by the staff of the sponsor who was handing the number plates to the players.
Telling the staff his name and ID number, he got a plate of No. 88, which meant he was the 88th player to perform.
Headed by the staff, he arrived at the backstage of the hall.
There were nearly 300 players having passed the initial audition; the backstage was a little crowed. Some staff were maintaining the order, otherwise it would be an awful mess.
"Players needing make-up go to the powder room, and the others stay here. Please be patient," said a staff with a loudspeaker.
Song Yan swept through the backstage, but failed to find Xia Xiang or Song Xue. He walked to a corner and closed his eyes to take a rest.
"Hey, bro. You're here. I've looked for you for a while. Do you need make-up? I have a friend in the powder room, and she is a makeup girl." Xia Xiang's voice sounded.
Song Yan opened his eyes and saw Xia Xiang's face covered with thick powder.
"Dude, you look terrible with the make-up," he blurted out. They were good buddies, though they just met each other yesterday.
"You don't understand. This is stage makeup. You have to wear thick powder, otherwise your skin will look sallower on camera," said Xia Xiang with a smile. Obviously, he was not angered by Song Yan's words.
"Really? Well, I don't know that."
"Let's go. I'll take you to the powder room."
"That's not necessary." Song Yan shook his head. The image that he wore thick powder chilled him to the bone.
Since Song Yan didn't want to put on make-up, Xia Xiang wouldn't force him. Suddenly, he remembered something and asked, "Did you watch the initial audition on Xiangcheng TV?"
"I had some work to finish yesterday, so I didn't."
"Dude, you are really good at playing piano. You lied to me that you were lucky enough to pass the audition, but actually you are totally able to win the competition." Xia Xiang cast a stern glance at Song Yan, feigning anger.
Before Song Yan could say something, Xia Xiang said excitedly, "If I'm right, you can hold a candle to those piano masters. What's more, the original music you played yesterday is such a good piece of music. You are both excelled at playing piano and writing music. You must be the winner of the competition! And your cousin Song Xue are also good at playing piano. She reached at least Professional Level 9. You two may be the first and second places of the competition. Oh shoot, I should just quit the competition now."
"Come on! Dude, stop making fun of me. You are skilled at playing piano too."
"Bah! Two boasters! I feel gross." A man's voice came from behind their back.
Song Yan and Xia Xiang turned and saw two men and a woman standing behind them with mocking smiles.
"What did you just say? Dude, you should watch your language!" Xia Xiang stared angrily at the middle of the three, who was a man with a turtleneck. It was this man who mocked them earlier.
"Hahaha! You're pissed off because I was telling the truth." The man curled his lips, eyes full of disdain.
"You're asking for it!" Xia Xiang was instantly angered as he raised his fist in an attempt to give the man a punch. Song Yan, however, stopped him and said, "Bro, calm down. Don't punch him here."